Volunteer New York!'s Board of Directors is proud to bestow its highest honor, the 2024 Legacy Award, upon Dr. Valerie Mason Cunningham. 

Valerie’s dedication to Volunteer New York! and our community can be characterized in one word: transformative. Serving on the Board of Directors for nine years, including three years as the Board Chair, Valerie played a vital role in furthering Volunteer New York!’s resilience and growth. When the global pandemic created new challenges, Valerie offered a steady, strategic, and positive approach, supporting organization leadership to ensure continued success during unprecedented times. 

Beyond her contributions to Volunteer New York!, Valerie’s commitment to addressing the community’s greatest challenges is evident through her unwavering support of educational institutions, nonprofits, and civic organizations. From serving on the Mercy University Board of Trustees, to acting as a strategic business advisor to Sister to Sister International, Inc., to embracing her advocacy role with the Urban Resource Institute’s Friends of URI, it is clear that Valerie embodies the true meaning of volunteerism and giving back. 

Professionally, Valerie is a former Senior Vice President at Xerox Corporation. Valerie held many senior executive roles at Xerox, leading organizations globally and developing high-performance work teams. She retired after ascending to the role of Vice President of North America Channel Marketing Operations. Today, Valerie can be found advising, inspiring, and coaching individuals and organizations on progressive leadership with a focus on Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Accessibility & Belonging (DEIA&B), and emphasizing Belonging. Alongside her Co-Founder and Co-CEO, Emily Rice Reynolds, Valerie founded Mason & Rice LLC, furthering Valerie’s belief system of PRIDE: Personal Recognition in Delivering Excellence. Valerie is an accomplished strategic thinker, change champion, and business value creator who has positively impacted the business services and technology industries throughout her illustrious career. 

Valerie has received numerous awards and distinguished honors for her work in the public and private sectors. She recently presented a TEDx Talk titled “You Have to Go Through Something to Get to Something” and received the 2023 Westchester County Trailblazers Madam C.J. Walker Economic Development Award.   

As a first-generation college graduate, Valerie attended Spelman College (HBCU) for two years and earned her Bachelor of Science degree from SUNY Old Westbury. Most recently, she received an Honorary Doctorate degree in Commercial Science from Mercy University. Valerie is a Leadership Westchester Graduate. 

Valerie resides in Westchester County, New York, with her husband, and is a dedicated mother to her son, who resides in Georgia. 

Join us at the upcoming Volunteer Spirit Awards as we celebrate Valerie Mason Cunningham's remarkable legacy and her profound impact on Volunteer New York! and beyond. 

For more information about the 44th Annual Volunteer Spirit Awards, including available sponsorship opportunities, please visit: www.volunteernewyork.org/awards